Chapter 7
Sabastian
“He’ll be fine,” Collin said, stepping out of the room and leaving the door open. Glancing through the doorway, Oakley lay on his side, fast asleep. “He had a panic attack. With his condition, I gave him some meds, along with a high dose of pain reliever. Sleep right now is the best option.”
He looked so small in my bed, just as he had before. He took up less than half of the space, even curled up into a tight ball. The IV bag was hung on the mobile pole that connected to his arm.
“The IV will not only rehydrate him but also help push out the rest of the drugs Donny gave him if they aren’t out of his system yet as it is.”
I turned my glare towards him, leaning against the wall with my arms crossed. I still had a mind to shoot him in the head.
How dare he leave someone like Oakley with a monster of a man? The scars showed years of abuse.
“Start explaining before I kill ya.”
“You won’t kill me. We both know that.” Collin held his head up, knowing he was right.
But I could fuck him up. “I swear, I didn’t know.
Donny called me a few times over the past so odd years.
That boy in there has nearly died more than once, mostly from some sort of sickness.
Food poisoning twice, and who knows what else.
Those times, he never had any marks that I could see.
He seemed well overall. Quiet and skittish.
But answered everything I had asked. Donny said the boy was his nephew and had autism, so going to a doctor’s office or hospital wasn’t a feasible task.
“I’d treat the systems, give him meds, IVs, and all would be good again. Each time, Donny would be there watching everything I did, but I suspected it was because he was worried the boy would freak out. Not that I couldn’t handle a freakout.”
Collin was a saint. He could deal with a lot of crap thrown at him. It wasn’t because he had two lovers, who he adored, but he’d seen things that most people couldn’t handle. He had a way to deal with skittish kinds of souls.
“You kind of went over how you came across him, and I’m glad it was you,” he went on. “But those marks, all of them, weren’t there the last time I saw him, and that was…like two years ago or so. The burns….that boy has gone through hell.”
“You’re telling me,” I huffed, some of my anger simmering. “How old was he then?”
“Fourteen? Donny didn’t give me an exact age. He’s maybe sixteen now, maybe seventeen, if my calculations are correct.”
“Donny said he’s eighteen.”
“I’ll do my magic and track down whatever info I can. I’m assuming you’ll want me to?”
“Yeah.”
“Give me the day. I’ll need a room….”
“Take my office. I won’t be able to work anyways.” Not until I got a better understanding of Oakley’s wellbeing.
Collin dipped his head, leaving me to watch the boy who was quickly taking up more time in my mind than I originally planned.
There was something about him that called to me. Something that spoke to a part of me that I let out only at certain times of the year.
I was screwed.
Logically, I knew I couldn’t allow this boy to stay here. No matter how old he was, I’d be sending him off with Collin later today. I did my part. I saved a life in a way only I could do.
“Hey Sabastian?” Collin called through the house, his voice rising from the bottom of the stairs.
It took a bit more work than it should have to pull my gaze from the sleeping boy and move away from the wall.
“Yeah?”
Collin stood at the bottom of the stairs, hand on the railing, dark hair slicked back from his face.
“Where’s Donny?”
“Rotting in his house.”
Collin nodded once, face a mask to whatever thoughts he had. Then, he turned, going back to his search.
He was one of the few men I could count on at any time day or night. We weren’t related, despite how similar our eyes and mannerisms were. Collin was family, though. Our secret weapon in searching the dark web for info that was otherwise unattainable.
Knowing that Oakley would be sleeping for a few hours, I slowly made my way down the stairs. It was barely noon, yet I was more than ready for this day to be over with already.
Leaning over the counter, head in my hands, I debated with myself. I knew, fuck, I knew I had to send the boy off with Collin. He’d be safe, well taken care of, and get the help Oakley would need to survive this world. He’s got a great life in the end, and that was all that mattered.
Maybe this coming weekend, I’d take a trip to a town over, where fewer people knew who I was. They only knew me as the Daddy Dom, who enjoyed catering to a little. I’d read someone a book, hold them, and care for a little for an hour or two.
***
With some homemade chicken noodle soup simmering on the stove, Collin ventured into the kitchen. His eyes were glued to a tablet, a finger swiping over whatever he was reading.
He looked worn out, but determined. Wrinkles on his forehead in concentration as he quickly swiped back to something.
“He’s almost eighteen,” he muttered. “God. These links to so many pictures. Donny better be fucking dead or I’ll go visit him.”
“He’s dead. Probably starting to stink up the place by now.”
“Good. Why hadn’t I seen these before now?” He was mostly talking to himself. “So many pictures. Starting, I’m guessing, around the age of nine or ten. His face is blurred out for the most part, but it’s him. Same user each time.”
Now, I was tempted to make Donny come back to life just so I could take my time killing him over again.
“He’s…you have to keep him, Sabastian.” Collin finally looked up at me, his brown eyes filled with the haunts of whatever he saw.
“He’ll be eighteen next month, but even then, it won’t matter.
Not when Donny put out a hit on the poor boy.
It looks like it was meant not to load unless something happened to him.
People are talking about Oakley, where he could be.
I deleted all your info and profile, which wasn’t traceable anyway, but it was safer that way. ”
“I’m not stupid.” Playing around on the dark web was tricky. I knew the risks and took my safety seriously. No one could be able to trace stuff back to me. “He has a hit on him?”
“I’m going to guess here,” Collin flipped the tablet to where I could see it better.
“Donny didn’t plan to sell him, exactly.
He wanted the money and had meet-ups daily for the boy.
Some to meet and greet, others for being used.
You weren’t meant to walk away last night. Least of all with that boy.”
“Donny did press me to drink something, which I didn’t. I was in a hurry to get the…purchase home.”
Collin eyed me, before turning back to the tablet. “At least ten others were lined up, with more trying to buy the kid. Now that Donny hasn’t logged in in twelve hours, there’s a hit for Oakley. His life is at stake.”
Well fuck. I ran a hand down my face.
“His mother is dead, overdose, years ago. No father mentioned. No other family that I can see, but if that changes, I’ll let you know. Most of the time like this, there is no one to track down. He’s most likely the last of his bloodline.”
Of course, he is. Why sell someone you didn’t even plan to really sell if there were still family members alive?
“I’ve deleted all info about him that I can find, but people still talk. He won’t be safe. Just because I’ve taken the stuff down doesn’t mean someone else will post updates or put a bounty out for him. Men are….creatures that shouldn’t have been given the right to live.”
I had nothing to say. He was more than right.
“Do you want any of these pictures or info?”
“Fuck no. Delete it all.”
Why the hell would I want pictures of a child in any form that was most likely sexual?
Collin seemed satisfied with that answer, easily deleting everything right there on his tablet.
“His care,” he barely glanced up at me. “Lots of rest. Easy foods, water. The normal, which I’m sure you already know about.”
“I’m not new to the slave world,” that was an understatement. I’d known about it all since I was young enough to know there were monsters in the dark. They weren’t under the dark bed, instead out there in real life.
“He’s not sure when the last time he went to the bathroom, so keep an eye on that. I have some enemas I’ll leave for him, along with pain and a few other meds that he could use. Keep rules clear. Set boundaries. Overall, I think Oakley will come out of his shell in time pretty easily.”
“And if not?”
“One day at a time, dear friend.” Collin shot me a look. “You own him. I know that term isn’t right, but for what the world will think, that’s what it is. Take care of him. Show him the good in life. Oakley hasn’t been in school since he was ten years old.”
Why wasn’t I surprised by that?
“I’ll go do one last check on him, and then I’ll head out.” With that, he turned, leaving me with more thoughts than I wanted.
Why me? I thought.
Looking at the ceiling gave me no answers. I made my bed and now I had to lay in it.